The above-mentioned handling devices in particular involve robots, i.e. universally-applicable automatic movement devices with a number of axes. The movements of the machine axes are freely programmable in respect of the movement sequence and sensor guided where necessary. The axes involved can be translational and/or rotational axes. The handling devices considered are able to be equipped with pickups for picking up and putting down objects or for picking up tools, processing tools or other production means. They can perform handling, manufacturing and/or operating tasks. Depending on the equipping of the handling device, movements can be undertaken in one surface, such as in a cylindrical surface for example, or within a three-dimensional working space. Further known handling devices are so-called pickers, such as delta pickers operating in two or three dimensions for example. Such pickers are preferably used for packing packaged objects such as confectionery, bread, cakes and pastries, writing articles, medical products and the like.
The conveyor devices involved are for example driven conveyor belts, roller tracks, turntables and the like. These types of conveyor device are also referred to by the generic term conveyor, they are typically driven at a constant speed, e.g. by means of a standard motor. They can also be equipped with linear encoders, such as with a rotary linear encoder for example. On the basis of the encoder signals detected the respective position and/or speed of a moving object can be derived. The determination of the respective position of the respective speed of a moving object can for example be undertaken by means of a control device which is connected for exchange of signals or data to such a linear encoder. Alternately the respective position and/or speed of the moving object are able to be detected via an optical measurement system connected to the control device. A measurement camera is aligned for optical detection of the respective objects on the conveyor device. Suitable measurement software then computationally determines the current movement position or the respective speed.
Frequently one or more handling devices operate in a network with one or more conveyor devices. To control the handling device a common control device or one control device in each case for the respective handling device can be present. The handling devices can be arranged in relation to the conveyor device such that a respective handling device can only pick up objects from and assigned conveyor device or a number of objects from a number of conveyor devices. For example a network can comprise two pickers and four conveyor devices. For example one type of confectionery will be transported on each of the four conveyor devices. The two pickers can be controlled by the control device such that a desired number of confectionery items of each type are sorted by the two pickers into the packaging provided for them. The network can also feature a further conveyor device on which in a similar manner the packaging, such as confectionery trays for example, is moved past the two pickers for filling.
It is known from the prior art that the pickup is moved along the shortest connection, meaning along a straight line, between the starting point and the computed destination point as quickly as possible. The starting point can, in accordance with the previous example, be the last position during filling of the confectionery tray with confectionery. The destination point is especially that position at which the object to be picked up will arrive taking into consideration a movement time of the pickup to be expected and taking into consideration the further transport by means of the conveyor device which will arise. After the object is picked up, the current destination point becomes the new starting point for the return movement of the pickup to the next filling position or back to a new confectionery tray to be filled. The latter form the new destination point for the pickup.
To keep the movement time as small as possible the pickup will be accelerated within the framework of the kinematical boundaries of the handling device as quickly as possible and braked shortly before reaching the destination point again as quickly as possible.